Randy Arozarena has accomplished a lot in his brief MLB career. But on Thursday night, he cost his team with an effort that left a lot to be desired.
Arozarena and the Tampa Bay Rays opened up a four-game series at home against the Baltimore Orioles. With the two teams tied atop the American League East, it’s a big series. Tampa led 1-0 in the fourth inning when Baltimore’s Gunnar Henderson hit a ball down the left-field line.
The ball was largely hit away from the defense and the left-handed hitting Henderson was running hard for the entire play. So, chances are that Arozarena wasn’t going to be able to limit Henderson to a single. But after getting the ball, Arozarena was in no hurry to get the ball back into the infield. When he did, the throw was incredibly casual, lobbed in high and soft — something you might see a player do when shagging balls during batting practice.
Seeing that, Henderson continued to run hard and ended up at third base with a triple. The extra 90 feet made a huge difference. Tampa, trying to protect the lead, brought the infield in with Henderson at third and only one out. Adley Rutschman knocked the ball through the drawn-in infield to tie the game.
Incredible baserunning by Orioles phenom Gunnar Henderson to turn a groundball to left field into a triple. ⚾️🔥pic.twitter.com/5RgPfp7o4z
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) July 21, 2023
And while Henderson’s incredible hustle deserves praise, baseball fans were equally quick to slam Arozarena’s poor effort.
Your club has blown a 9-game lead over the last month to the guys you're playing right now and you're … not interested? Jesus, Randy. https://t.co/kxwoWKcgTY
— W.W. McClyde (@WWMcClyde) July 20, 2023
Dude. Arozarena. https://t.co/jY6W020iXE
— John Stolnis (@JohnStolnis) July 20, 2023
Why would he lob the ball in like that? GET THE BALL IN https://t.co/S1ukSHKKFA
— Rich Ωue 🐶⚾️ The Equalizer🥋 (@iBaseball_1) July 21, 2023
When will the Randy Arozarena is a bottom 5 defensive outfielder in baseball discourse start? https://t.co/10CUA4CgqU
— Boston Sports Enjoyer (@DeversEnjoyer) July 20, 2023
https://twitter.com/jasoncollette/status/1682171256056033280
The Rays have actually seen firsthand how important getting the ball in quickly is this season.
In June, they scored two runs on what looked like it would be a single to right field when the Boston Red Sox struggled to get a ball in.
The Red Sox showing off their Little League defense. pic.twitter.com/NjvlIG1EQ4
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) June 4, 2023
It’s hard to understand exactly what Arozarena was doing here.
If this was a matter of him struggling to get to the ball, it would be one thing. That’s frustrating, but can potentially be understood with even a minor injury. But that wasn’t the issue here.
Getting to the ball quickly doesn’t do any good if that’s the effort you make to get the ball back in.
[Photo Credit: MASN]
